Us stateside folk have an uncanny admiration for Londoners and while we may not admit it, their British flair is infused in our daily being. Fashion is no different. Ahem, London fashion is no different. We try to emulate their effortless style and we’ve even fall victim to that God-forsakenTop Shop (which I utterly love).
My point is, everything about London rocks and the first chance I get to move, please believe that I’m taking it.
From Jeremy Scott’s Flinstone-inspired collection to Temperly London’s circus ring, (in my Rachel Zoe voice) I DIE. Spring 2010 in London catapulted straight into the future with a spaceship-approved silhouettes, pop art colors and body-hugging dresses.
I admit to being a bit biased, having amassed a slew of favorite collections (Nicole Farhi, Matthew Williamson, Sass and Bide, Basso & Brooke and Jaeger London) but I gave them all a equal chance and I enjoyed London… Here are some of my faves.
MilanFashion Week is here (as of yesterday) and they’re proving why they topped Metro’s Best Dressed List. So far, I have a swarm of looks to pick from (which is good) and I’m noticing some MAJOR stylistic trends for Spring. Stay tuned as I finish my two cents on London.
xx
Nicole
London Fashion Week is officially under way.. And I’m so excited. Some of the world’s edgiest styles originate across the pond. I’m a bit biased because anything British, I adore – especially those accents.
“Fashion is my football”
I say it jokingly but believe me, it’s very true. I couldn’t have picked a better career than a budding fashion journalist. I’m not “front and center” at any shows just yet but that doesn’t mean I can’t test out my skills. During Fashion Week, I’m like a kid on Christmas Eve waiting anxiously to open her gifts. I’ll stay up hours on end reviewing the collections and eyeing out the hottest trends.
I was a bit nervous to see what the collections would look like with all this “recession” talk because my lack of job in fashion is the hurtful reminder that in economic downturn, fashion is the FIRST thing to go.
However, the designers proved that the recession may not be fully behind us, but they really aren’t interested in staying there.
The runways were full of practical, daring and sexy clothing. And the silhouettes, man how they’ve changed. Last season, we say all the body-con pieces (think spandex dresses a la Hervé Léger). This season, it’s all about loose-fitting comfortably, chic designs (Isaac Mizrahi’s entire collection is devoted to this).
Here are my favorite looks from the runway in no particular order.
PS. Can I tell you how much I adore those Proenza boys?
So as soon as I got into the groove of blogging the unthinkable happened: my computer died.
The same trusty computer that saw me through two colleges, numerous moves and memory upgrades decided to call it quits without giving me a heads up a little over a month ago.
As a writer, it killed me. Especially with the other issues I was facing. Writing was my refuge, a way to cope with the “mundaness” that my life had become. Writing was my silver lining and suddenly that platform disappeared.
Yeah, when it rains it pours.
On the flip side, I’d read enough horror stories from writers who lost all of their work when their computers died so I had invested in an external hard drive. The majority of my things were backed up (except for my niece’s 1st birthday pics and other miscellaneous important things) but realistically speaking, I didn’t lose much.
It’s been over a month since I’ve even considered writing again but things are looking up.
I believe the obstacles I’ve faced are all in place to teach me a lesson that life RARELY goes according to plan and if you want something bad enough you better find a way to get it done.
So here’s to writing- from my Blackberry Curve 
My how the girl’s grown….
When we were first introduced to Teyana Taylor, she was Pharrell’s protégé. A feisty, a raspy-voiced teenager who sported BBC/Ice Cream and chose to wear sneakers with her custom-made Heatherette birthday dress.
A few years later and Teyana still hasn’t conformed to the standards of being a “female” in the music business. She’s rough around the edges but can switch it up in a Herve Leger dress at the drop of a dime and for that, I’ll love her forever…
Teyana works her magic in the latest campaign for the streetwear brand, Married to the MOB and I’m really digging it. It’s not too frilly, not too pink and just enough defiance to totally suit her.
I love Common. I mean the crochet pant wearing, PETA-approving Common. As a lyricists, he’s genius. As a black male in Hollywood and the music industry, I think he’s everything that we’d hope an artist would grow in to. To be honest, I still swoon over his song I Used to Love H.E.R. and I secretly wish he and Erykah Badu will get back together. But that’s neither here nor there.
While I love the Chicago native, I’ve noticed something in the transformation of him that doesn’t sit well with me. As he racks up the accolades, his music gets a bit more superficial and while I admit to liking the past few Common albums, Universal Mind Control just didn’t do it for me like I thought it would. Nonetheless, there are a few songs that make me happy enough to dance around my living.
One song in particular, has a message of perserverance in the struggle of attaining dreams and for that I love ”What a World”. Not to mention, DA Wallach of Chester French is too cute for his own good…
In a world dominated by 4″ heels, I’m the outsider that chooses to walk in flats. Don’t get me wrong, I love a great heel, but the likelihood of me wearing them in my day to day is very slim. An affirmation to my rebellious lifestyle, these Alexander Wang shoes are giving me just what I need to complete my Fall wardrobe and for my fashion comrades, he’s created a mean stiletto counterpart to compliment these “Frankie Creeper”s.
How thoughtful of Wang to look out for all types of fashionistas, it’s no wonder the wonderkid won the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund last year.
If you’re anything like me, you’ll head on over to Shop Bop to get your pair.
There are so many reasons to love Kelis… but her style, her voice, and her nonchalant attitude towards life’s most “trivial” issues (i.e. a messy divorce to a major rap star) takes the cake. From her days of rocking a green afro to shaving off one side of her hair, Kelis has set many a trends that stars like Rihanna are branding today.
Right now, Kelis is working on her new album, playing mommy to her newborn son Knight and settling in to life as a newly-single superstar. Sure, the recent divorce settlement from her union with Nas will have she and baby Knight sitting pretty for a long time but I still believe that Kelis is better than that. She was whole before she met Nas and she’ll be after the ink on the papers dry.
While giving little hints on her transformation through her Twitter page, Kelis is bound to make a big bang of a comeback and when she does, it’ll definitely be something that not even Rihanna can touch… yeah, she’s that great… I’m convinced of it.
Word just in from WWD, the sisterly duo behind the lovely Rodarte brand will bring their designs to the masses thanks to Target.
The mass retailer is surely stepping its game up with a swarm of well-known brands creating guest-designer collections and I think its a good thing. Not only are they getting major exposure, they’re racking up a bit of money in return… As if this wasn’t exciting enough, Anna Sui for Target will be in stores soon..
Rodarte is most known for its goddess-like pieces and those uber expensive leather leggings that Rihanna wore earlier this year. Needless to say, I’m stoked about this collection.
According to WWD:
“The 55-piece Rodarte line for Go International will launch at most Target stores nationwide and on target.com on Dec. 20, and will be available through Feb. 6. “
Prices for Target’s Go International Rodarte collection will range from $9.99 to $79.99.
Can’t wait to see it.. This Christmas will definitely be a merry one!
